hi winterforayear-

Welcome to the BPD forum, a sub-forum under Personality Place on PC. Yup, the jury is still out for me too on the question you ask. I'm not a doctor, I'm a layperson dx with bipolar and bpd. I've heard bpd and bipolar can go hand in hand. FYI, if you don't know it, my understanding is the DSM-IV TR reference is used by mental health professionals and doctors to classify mental health diagnosis. The DSM is also used to give an id for a dx for insurance purposes also. So I guess one can read what and how doctors and insurance companies classify or define bpd in the DSM is what I'm saying. Sorry, coffee isn't working well here . Quick thx to Micah for a couple links I hadn't found. The first link Micah shared for wikipedia has DSM bpd info in section 2.1. I've read a few books on bpd also, I'm new to discover it. The answer I'd have for you is somewhat vague because besides the DSM I've seen different explanations for bpd in all the material I've read up to this point! Just sharing what I've found so far with you. Good luck and a warm welcome to you again...